Over a quarter of a million Europeans urge the EU to end bottom trawling in marine protected areas
Press Release Date: May 13, 2025
Location: Brussels
Contact:
Emily Fairless, Communications Officer | email: efairless@oceana.org | tel.: +32 478 038 490
Citizens urge EU Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans to better manage protected areas for the benefit of fishers and the ocean
Brussels – Today [13 May] representatives of small-scale fishers, scientists, citizens and civil society organisations handed in a petition (here & here) to the European Commissioner for Fisheries and Oceans, signed by over 250,000 European citizens, calling to end bottom trawling in marine protected areas (MPAs).
In doing so, they urge Commissioner Costas Kadis to fully implement the existing Habitats Directive, uphold the ambition of the 2023 EU Marine Action Plan and ensure the upcoming Ocean Pact addresses the continuous issue of bottom trawling in EU MPAs.
Pictures of the petition delivery © Maxime Baldewyns
The hand-in by Patagonia, WeMove Europe, ClientEarth and organisations from the Protect our Catch campaign [1] in Brussels is the culmination of a series of similar activities targeting national governments and supported by citizens in the UK, Germany and Spain at the end of last year. The petition reinforces poll results from last year that found that 82% of citizens across seven EU countries believe in stricter regulation of bottom trawling, and 73% would support banning this destructive fishing practice in EU MPAs. It follows the release of David Attenborough’s film, Ocean, which shows previously unseen footage of how bottom trawling is draining life from the sea.
Ahead of the third UN Ocean Conference in France, when nations are expected to announce new commitments, particularly concerning MPAs, the world will be looking at the ambition of Commissioner Kadis’s Ocean Pact. However, a recent leaked draft suggests it will hardly change the status quo for EU MPAs and will not even mention destructive fishing or bottom trawling.
Vera Coelho, deputy vice president at Oceana in Europe, said – on behalf of participating civil society organisations: “Citizens are calling for change – the continuous destruction by bottom trawling happening in marine protected areas is a problem that the EU cannot ignore any longer. The European Ocean Pact must finally ensure real protection of EU marine protected areas, benefitting the ocean, fishers, and coastal communities. Doing so would mean the EU could lead by example globally on the 30×30 target at the upcoming UN Ocean Conference.”
Inka Cresswell, filmmaker and marine biologist said: “People across Europe are standing up for the future of our oceans. Bottom trawling is not only shockingly wasteful, killing vast amounts of marine life as unintended bycatch, but it devastates entire ecosystems, tearing up century old corals and seabed habitats. We hope Commissioner Kadis will hear and respect their clear message. He has the opportunity to secure the future of these vital ecosystems and the coastal communities that depend on them, but time is running out.”
Raquel Gaspar, founder of Ocean Alive, which works with local fisherwomen in Portugal to restore the Sado Estuary, said: “We want Mr. Kadis to know that communities around Europe are already moving away from destructive fishing towards restoring their coasts through diversified livelihoods and education. Fishers themselves are playing a key role in this and realising the benefits of properly protected areas. It’s time to listen to those who have a real vision for our future, not those leading the race to the bottom.”
The European Commission has a responsibility to ensure Member States are enforcing European environmental law when it comes to protecting their MPAs against destructive activities, including bottom trawl fishing. The EU has committed to the international UN target to conserve and effectively manage 30% of its waters by 2030. The organisations participating in the petition delivery are also concerned about recent statements, including by Commissioner Kadis, in support of a “site-by-site” approach to protecting MPAs, because such an approach would be grossly inadequate to tackle the systemic nature of the problem and to provide the required effective protection to the current 5000 European MPAs.
More pictures of the petition delivery available here
Notes to Editors:
[1] Protect Our Catch is a campaign by leading ocean advocates, including Oceana, Seas At Risk, Only One, Environmental Justice Foundation, Blue Marine Foundation and BLOOM, in collaboration with small-scale fishers, that joins hundreds of thousands of citizen activists in calling on European leaders to ban destructive fishing such as bottom trawling in MPAs.
According to a recent study by National Geographic Pristine Seas, bottom trawling results in a net cost to European society of up to €11 billion every year. The same study showed that 60% of European MPAs are still trawled, confirming that the majority are mere ‘paper parks’ with no effective protection in place. In fact, bottom trawling is more prevalent inside than outside protected areas. Further, there is little political will among EU countries to phase out this destructive practice in their MPAs. However, well-managed MPAs can guard marine life against climate change impacts, and support local jobs and economies, including the livelihoods of fishers.
Bottom trawling is the one of the most destructive fishing methods that indiscriminately catches all types of species and habitats in its path. It negatively impacts both the long-term abundance of fish stocks and the fishing industry itself, especially small-scale fishers who make up the majority of Europe’s fleet (almost 80%) and account for half of the jobs in the sector.
